Tongue-Twister Competition - for ensemble

Tongue-Twister Competition was composed for Ensemble Intercontemporain in 2016 for a concert during the Manifeste Academy 2016 at IRCAM in Paris, France.

This piece explores a dynamic structure, in which the combination of instruments varies in response to the competence of instrumentalists, while a performance is ongoing. Referring to the general rules of Tongue-Twister - a game, in which players have to pronounce a verbal phrase, which is difficult to articulate properly, as fast as possible - , this piece is composed as a tournament competition consisting of several rounds, in which each instrumentalist has to play given musical phrases as fast as possible. In this tournament, all players except a percussionist and a double bassist are regarded as participants of the competition. In each of first 9 rounds, a player who played the given phrases the slowest is disqualified from participating in the following rounds. After these first 9 rounds, there is a final round, in which two top candidates compete their speed to play musical phrases with each other. At the end of the final round, the grand winner of the competition is determined. This grand winner is required to play a breathtaking solo in the fanciest way. Let’s appreciate this ground winner’s fantastic performance!

Constellation was composed for Micro Ensemble(Finland), in which all instruments are designed to
produce quarter-tones, in 2015.

This piece explores quarter-tone pitch intervals. The quarter-tone pitch intervals are used as an essential
pitch interval in a scale, from which harmonic, melodic and micro-polyphonic elements in this piece are
derived.

This piece can be divided into three parts; harmonic part, solo part and non-metric part. The harmonic
part aims to make an audience get used to the microtones, and so, introduces, first, a microtonal scale in
descending passages, then, chords, in which microtonal pitch intervals include. The solo part focuses
more on timbres and gestures of the instruments rather than the microtonal pitch interval in contrast to
the other parts. The non-metric part constitutes a motion of the alternation between ritardando and
accelerando and also a micro-polyphonic passage, whose pitches are chosen from a microtonal scale. All
parts are performed without interruptions.

Centrifugal melodies - for flute, violin, and Harp

-10:07

Year of composition: 2014

Realized at: IEM - Institute of Electronic Music and Acoustics

Duration: 10min approximately

Program note:

Centrifugal melodies was commissioned by Vertixe Sonora Ensemble, and composed at the University
of Music and Performing Arts Graz in Austria in 2014. This piece is inspired by centrifugal force caused
by cyclic motions. From the idea of centrifugal force the basic structures of the 2 dimensions of this
composition are derived: fluctuations of musical tension, and emergences of melodies.

The fluctuation of musical tension is associated with changes of centrifugal force in dependence of the
speed of rotation. In imitation of irregular changes of centrifugal force, the musical tension oscillates
between higher and lower intensities, while three types of melodies and few types of phrases are
introduced.
The emergence of melodies is designed in analogy to the visual image of an object revolving in
space,where the different sides repeat to come into and out of view. Eventually the four types of
melodies vanish during the course of the piece. Toward the end, the tension of the piece gradually raises
in accordance to the intensified centrifugal force during an acceleration of the cyclic motion.

Beyond the eternal chaos - for flute and electronics

BeyondTheEternalChaosST

-10:00

Year of composition: 2014

Realized at: IEM - Institute of Electronic Music and Acoustics

Duration: 10min approximately

Program note:

Beyond the eternal chaos was composed at die Kunstuniversität Graz in Austria in 2014. This piece was inspired by transformative phenomena between one and another. The inspiration is reflected to several levels of the piece such as changes of a prominence between the flute and electronics dependent on sections, transition between noise and tone in a phrase and so on. Such transformations are concreted by interpolation algorithms.The composition is divided into three sections. The first section renders a convergent process of three musical elements characterized by wavering motions between tone and noise, sustained tones with portamento and a melody outlined by tongue rams as well as lip slaps, respectively. The second section portrays a scene that electronics dominate prominently than the instrument. The third section draws a transformative development from a melody to an ascending passage. At the end, the piece finishes as if disappearing into chaos by echoes.

Assimilation - for contrabass and electronics

Year of composition: 2013

Realized at: IEM - Institute of Electronic Music and Acoustics

Duration: 8min approximately

Program note:

Assimilation was composed for a contrabass and a computer at die Kunstuniversität Graz in Austria in 2013.

It is an attempt to make organic relationships between three elements characterized by different quality of motions and of timbres; exploding attack - blaze, monotonous succession - monotone, and metallic harmony - bright. Various modes of correspondence between these three types of motions/timbres are explored during the course of the piece. Gradually they develop interdependently to a climax. At the end of the piece they are converged to a single stream through a superimposition of the different types of motions/timbres.

This composition was awarded a third prize at "International Electroacoustic Music Composition Award 2013(Taiwan)".

Satellite - for octaphonic fixed medium

Satellite

Takuto Fukuda

-5:55

Year of composition : 2010Realized at : Sonology Department, The Royal Conservatory in The HagueDuration : 5:55Program note :This piece was originally composed as an octaphonic fixed medium piece at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague in The Netherlands in 2010.This piece can be interpreted as a representation of the trajectory of a falling satellite. The narrative is that the orbital satellite gradually goes out of orbit and falls to earth by gravitation. So, the time structure consists of intervals between sound events, which have attacks and movements of crescendo - decrescendo and accelerando - ritardando combined, becoming shorter and shorter towards the crash point.All sound events and the time structure were realized by a single bell sound and an object-oriented controller which consists of a main sequencer, sub- sequencers and sound generators. The main sequencer decides where a sound object is put in the time dimension and it also decides the property of sound objects such as occurring intervals, scene numbers for behavior etc... The sub-sequencers, which are present in each sound object, were manipulated by the main sequencer. The sub- sequencer functions to parameterize several behaviors of a sound object such as the above-mentioned movements as well as fundamental notes, pitch register, degree of randomization, envelope etc. For the sound generation, all sound objects have a few granular synthesizers connected to the main- and sub-controllers.This version is a stereo reduction by binaural spatial simulation.This piece has been awarded the FUTURA prize at "Contemporary Computer Music Concert 2011", and selected for performance on "Seoul International Computer Music Festival 2011".

Still-life of cb. - for octaphonic fixed medium

Still life of Cb

Takuto Fukuda

-11:45

Year of composition : 2010Realized at : Sonology Department, The Royal Conservatory in The HagueDuration : 11:44Program note :This piece was composed for fixed media played on an 8 channel speaker system at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague in The Netherlands in 2010.The main concept of this piece is the replacement of an abstract still-life drawing by Pablo Picasso, into music through fragmentizing and then reconstructing the object starting with a multiperspective view. The compositional principle to construct a piece only from recorded samples of sounds played on musical instruments, was derived from the drawing process; a fragmentization and a reconstruction. Concretely, several double bass effects such as Collegno, Bartok pizzicato, Harmonics and Sulponticello, were utilized to synthesize characteristic material such as deep resonance,diverse timbres and gesture of sounds. Then, all this material was categorized according to the degree of concreteness vs. abstraction by applying several generative means. They were then classified functionally as either foreground, for which the materials were defined as ?main?, or background. Material with either function was sometimes transfigured into other material through the application of interpolation techniques.This piece received an honorary mention from "the International Electroacoustic Music Composition Competition Musica Nova 2010" and has been selected for performance on "the Sonic Rain Concert Series".

Transmigration - for octaphonic fixed medium

Year of composition : 2010Realized at : Sonology Department, The Royal Conservatory in The HagueDuration : 6:30Program note :This piece was composed for fixed media played on a cubic spatial speaker setting at The Institute of Sonology, The Royal Conservatoire, The Hague (The Netherlands) in 2010. The purpose of this piece was to realize movements of sounds not only horizontally but also vertically. So, eight loud speakers are put around the audience and manipulated through Ambisonic technology on Max/MSP.The uploaded one is bounced for stereo speaker system.

2/2 - for bassclarinet and computer

2/2ver2

Takuto Fukuda

-10:42

Year of composition : 2008Realized at : Sonology Department, Kunitachi college of musicDuration : Approximately 12 minProgram note :This piece was composed for Bassclarinet, Recorded bassclarinet and Computer at Sonology department of Kunitachi college of music, Tokyo in 2009. And electronic part was realized by Max/MSP and Logic pro 7 on Machintosh computer."2/2" (two over two) means a symbol that one mind and another one mind are in a consciousness of a person surrounded by society. We overcome diverse social terribleness by identifying various conflicts in ourselves and indicating our intentions. Author attempted to describe this conflictive process in this piece. Therefore time structure was planned as an expression of transformation from con?ictive scene into cooperative one.It has been selected as a finalist at "the International Electroacoustic Music Composition Competition Musica Nova 2008".

Chronoscope

Year of composition : 2007Realized at : Sonology Department, Kunitachi college of musicDuration : No informationProgram note :Chronoscope is a sound/visual interactive installation based on the concept; Abstraction of which our actions have been constructing times. It derives the following two relationships between audience and the work;1.Audience is stated as a reading point on a visual and auditory sequence, which represents a chain of times.2.Behaviors of the audience decides characteristics of the sequence itself as a result of a data-flow from a motion detecting system toward several parameters for the sequence.Thus, it is a system to visualize and to sonificate our commitment to times.

Flash back - for stereo fixed medium

Flashback

Takuto Fukuda

-8:20

Year of composition : 2006Realized at : Sonology Department, Kunitachi college of musicDuration : 8:20Program note :This electroacoustic piece was realized with Macintosh computer at Sonology department of Kunitachi College of Music, Tokyo in 2006. Compositional algorithms and sound syntheses were written in Max/MSP and LogicExpress7 was used as mixing software.An idea of this piece was from the soundscape that the human being would have heard in days of a fetus. In fact sounds of amniotic fluid, heartthrobs, sounds of bone and voices of persons are main motifs of the piece.It has been selected and performed at "The International Festival of Electroacoustic Music of Santiago, Ai-maako 2007 in Chile".